aseanpr

Cop’s wife who starved, tortured Myanmar maid to her death makes legal moves to avoid life imprisonment

aseanpr 29 4 月

7 minutes

SINGAPORE - In a turn of events, a 41-year-old housewife who starved, tortured and ultimately killed her domestic worker from Myanmar has changed lawyers and is making further moves in a bid to avoid life in prison. Gaiyathiri Murugayan, the wife of a policeman, pleaded guilty in February this year to 28 charges, the most serious being culpable homicide, for which prosecutors had sought the maximum sentence of life imprisonment. The other charges were mostly hurt-related offences for physical abuse she inflicted on 24-year-old Piang Ngaih Don, who weighed a mere 24kg when she died from the final assault on July 26, 2016. Gaiyathiri was due to be sentenced on Thursday (April 29) by High Court judge See Kee Oon. However, it emerged during the hearing that she had changed lawyers last month. Justice See noted that Gaiyathiri "appeared to have changed her position about maintaining her plea of guilt" and asked her new lawyer, Mr Joseph Chen, to clarify whether she wanted to retract her plea of guilt. Mr Chen said she wanted to submit a further plea for leniency and that he would be asking the prosecution to consider further reducing the culpable homicide charge. Gaiyathiri's charge had...

Work-from-home arrangements highlight need to build workers’ mental resilience: Zaqy

aseanpr 29 4 月

4 minutes

SINGAPORE - The adoption of work-from-home arrangements last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic has put a spotlight on the mental stressors faced by workers here, especially with the blurring of work-life boundaries. As such, building workers' mental resilience is critical, stressed Senior Minister of State for Manpower Zaqy Mohamad on Thursday (April 29) at the launch of this year's National Workplace Safety and Health Campaign. The hybrid event was held at the Trade Association Hub in Jurong and streamed online. "Workers must take time to take care not just of their physical health, but also of their mental well-being," he added. The annual campaign, organised by the Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Council, entails year-long outreach efforts to promote safety and health in workplaces. On mental well-being, a new campaign in September will see healthcare institutions and agencies share best practices to build workers' mental resilience. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) will continue to assist firms in developing such support at their workplaces, said Mr Zaqy. The WSH council will also be developing training workshops and an online resource page on mental health matters. In addition...

Cab driver in S’pore found guilty of molesting female passenger

aseanpr 29 4 月

2 minutes

SINGAPORE - A cab driver was found guilty on Thursday (April 29) of molesting a female passenger after a trial. Haji Mohamed Yusoof, 56, had contested a charge of outraging the modesty of the woman, in an incident which happened on Jan 5, 2019 in Lorong Ah Soo near Upper Paya Lebar Road. The 30-year-old victim cannot be named due to a gag order protecting her identity. It is unclear if he is still working as a taxi driver. Delivering his verdict on Thursday, District Judge John Ng noted that Yusoof and the woman had given different accounts of the incident, and there were no other witnesses present. The woman said she had fallen asleep in the back of the taxi after boarding it, and later woke up to Yusoof molesting her. After she shouted at him, he returned to the driver's seat and dropped her off shortly after. Yusoof had testified that he had not touched the victim. He had tried to wake her up by calling out to her when the taxi reached her intended destination. On Thursday, District Judge Ng found the woman to be a truthful witness and her evidence to be cogent and reliable. He found Yusoof to be evasive instead. Yusoof is expected to be sentenced on May 17. Offenders convicted ...

S’pore’s total employment grew in Q1 for first time since start of Covid-19, retrenchments fell for 2nd straight quarter

aseanpr 28 4 月

3 minutes

SINGAPORE - The labour market has continued its recovery from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the first three months of the year, latest manpower estimates showed on Wednesday (April 28). Overall, resident employment growth was broad-based, while non-resident employment contracted across all sectors, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM). Total employment grew for the first time since the start of the pandemic in the first quarter of the year, led mostly by the services sectors' hiring of residents. These services sectors include information and communications, financial services and professional services, which continued to see employment expansion. Employment in construction also saw a slight rebound, with the contraction in non-resident employment moderating significantly. Employment in manufacturing continued to contract, but at a slower pace. Unemployment here, which peaked at 3.5 per cent in September last year, continued to ease but remains above pre-pandemic levels. The estimated overall unemployment rate in March is 2.9 per cent, said MOM. The unemployment rate among residents also fell slightly, from 4.3 per cent in January to 4 per cent in March. This puts the numbe...

Digital skills programme helps low-income families manage cyber wellness

aseanpr 28 4 月

3 minutes

SINGAPORE - With two teenaged daughters who were always glued to their digital devices, Mr Mohamad Roslan Palil, 54, struggled daily to ensure they did their homework on time and got enough sleep. When he took part in a pilot programme by Touch Community Services, Mr Roslan learnt how to use digital platforms and cyber wellness tips and was able to better understand and communicate with his daughters - and ultimately get them to adopt better habits when using their devices. As part of the Digitally Ready Families programme - aimed at teaching digital skills to low-income families - Mr Roslan and his wife learnt parenting strategies and how to have honest conversations with their teen daughters - aged 14 and 13 - about their use of electronic devices. They also have a six-year-old son. With the skills they have learnt, the family is now closer, and his daughters have become more disciplined in their device use and lead better and healthier lifestyles, said Mr Roslan, who is looking for a job. He said: "The communication skills I've learnt have helped me to better manage my daughters' device use. I have also learnt how to navigate websites and do some research to get more information...

Singapore and region stand to benefit from RCEP free trade agreement: MAS

aseanpr 28 4 月

4 minutes

SINGAPORE - The world's largest trade pact will reduce tariffs and harmonise trade rules, and Singapore and the region stand to gain from it by being more deeply plugged into global supply chains. This is the conclusion drawn by the Monetary Authority of Singapore's biannual macroeconomic review released on Wednesday (April 28), which said that the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is expected to increase regional trade flows and deepen cross-border production linkages among its 15 member economies. The review noted that analysis based on past trade pacts such as Singapore's free trade agreements with China and South Korea shows that Singapore became more integrated into the supply chains centred on these countries. In the same vein, the RCEP will boost the region's competitiveness as a location for supply chains, it said. "It should therefore help to draw in investments, offering companies a broad array of production locations with differing comparative advantages, and the opportunity to export at preferential tariff rates to a wide economic area comprising both high-income consumers and a large and growing middle-income segment." The RCEP brings together the 10 A...

Over 800 sign up as volunteers in new programme to spread accurate CPF information

aseanpr 28 4 月

5 minutes

SINGAPORE - When scientist Chin Zan Xin received her very first salary slip about five years ago, she thought it must have been calculated wrongly as her take-home pay was 20 per cent less than the monthly salary she was offered. It was only after doing some research online that she realised the sum had been added to her Central Provident Fund (CPF) accounts. The 28-year-old is now a volunteer with the CPF Board's Community Paying it Forward movement, which was officially launched on Wednesday (April 28) in conjunction with the global Pay It Forward Day. Like Ms Chin, more than 800 people have signed up as volunteers since January this year to share information with their networks about CPF, debunk misinformation and provide feedback to improve CPF services. They will be supported through a CPF Volunteering mobile application, said the CPF Board. CPF Board chief executive Augustin Lee said: "The idea for this movement came about because there are many fans of CPF out there who discovered the benefits of CPF later in life and wished that they had known about them much earlier." Ms Chin said that after learning more about the CPF system, she decided to use it as a tool to build the f...

Singapore Police Force station inspector allegedly molested 2 men at police facility

aseanpr 28 4 月

2 minutes

SINGAPORE - A police station inspector was charged in a district court on Tuesday (April 27) after he allegedly molested two men at a police facility. Yick Wai Hong, now 46, faces two molestation charges. He is said to have committed the offences in January last year. His alleged victims cannot be identified due to a gag order. Court documents do not state if they are in the Singapore Police Force. The court heard that in January last year, Yick allegedly pulled one of the men's head towards him, causing the latter's forehead to touch the station inspector's groin. Yick is said to have pulled a second man's head towards his groin at the same facility on Jan 23 last year. Police told The Straits Times in a statement on Tuesday evening that Yick has been suspended from service since April 8 this year. A police spokesman said: "Officers of the Singapore Police Force are expected to uphold the law and maintain high standards of discipline and integrity. We deal with officers who break the law severely, including charging them in court." Yick's bail was set at $10,000 and his case has been adjourned to May 18. For each count of molestation, an offender can be jailed for up to two years ...

S’pore-HK air tickets for May to early June snapped up after travel bubble relaunch announced

aseanpr 27 4 月

3 minutes

SINGAPORE - Flights from Singapore to Hong Kong have sold out after the relaunch of an air travel bubble slated to start on May 26 was announced. This travel arrangement will finally allow long-delayed quarantine-free travel to take off between both cities. Tickets for one-way direct flights from Singapore to Hong Kong by Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Cathay Pacific Airways from May 26 to June 4 were sold out as at 12pm on Tuesday (April 27). Next available tickets for the same route on SIA on June 7 were priced from $586, while the next available tickets for Cathay Pacific on June 5 were listed from $636. Demand was also strong for flights from Hong Kong to Singapore. Tickets for one-way direct flights from Hong Kong to Singapore by SIA from May 26 to June 3 were also sold out, with the next available ticket on June 4 priced from around $995. Cathay Pacific tickets for the same route on June 1 were available, from around $706. An SIA spokesman said the airline has seen a strong demand for its air travel bubble flights but declined to reveal figures due to commercial sensitivity. The travel bubble between both cities was originally planned to start on Nov 22 last year, but was defer...

Covid-19 impact on jobs would have been worse if not for strong partnership with employers, unions: Josephine Teo

aseanpr 27 4 月

5 minutes

SINGAPORE - The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on jobs would have been worse if not for the strong three-way partnership between the government, unions and employers, said Manpower Minister Josephine Teo in her May Day Message on Tuesday (April 27). The tripartite partnership allowed the swift implementation of measures to cut costs and save jobs, she added. In particular, the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) exemplified the value of "constructive unionism" as it had in past crises, calling on employers and workers to rally together to sustain businesses and save jobs, said Mrs Teo. "Where employers have exhausted ways of cutting business costs in other areas, the unions worked with employers on necessary measures to manage excess manpower, including wage cuts necessary to avoid retrenchments," she noted. "Employers too helped to preserve jobs and maintain a strong Singaporean core even if they had to restructure." Mrs Teo said NTUC also launched the NTUC Care Fund (Covid-19) to provide a one-off $300 financial assistance to distressed union members. For self-employed persons, NTUC launched a training fund to provide them with an allowance while they underwent skills courses....

Two drivers charged with duping LTA into issuing approval codes for trailers

aseanpr 27 4 月

2 minutes

SINGAPORE - Two men were charged in court on Tuesday (April 27) for cheating the Land Transport Authority into issuing registration approval codes for vehicle trailers. Loh Yeok Lum, 66, and Chua Cheng Kang, 64, are accused of engaging in a conspiracy to cheat the LTA on 21 occasions between October 2010 and April 2012. Both men were drivers for vehicle manufacturing firm Sin Trans Engineering at the time of their offences. Their alleged actions are said to have led inspection officers from JIC Inspection Services, an authorised LTA inspection centre, to submit reports which falsely declared the weight of various Sin Trans trailers. "LTA was thus deceived into believing that the trailers were compliant with the approved technical drawings when they were not," said the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) in a statement on Monday. As a result, the LTA issued approval codes for the registration of the trailers. The men each face 21 counts of cheating for their offences. Loh also faces three additional counts of cheating, over allegedly engaging in a similar cheating conspiracy with two JIC inspection officers on three instances in February 2014. Court records do not state if...

Woman accused of pressing heated iron repeatedly on domestic helper’s arm to be charged

aseanpr 27 4 月

2 minutes

SINGAPORE - A 42-year-old woman will be charged on Wednesday (April 28) with causing hurt to her former Indonesian domestic helper. She is accused of pressing a heated iron on her domestic helper's right arm repeatedly, as well as hitting her eyes with her fists and clothes hangers. The alleged abuse took place between February and October last year, police said in a statement on Tuesday (April 27). The abuse was reported on Oct 30 last year, said the police without specifying who lodged the report. The domestic worker had returned to Indonesia at the time but later came back to Singapore to assist with investigations. The woman will face one count of voluntarily causing grievous hurt, one count of voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous means, and two counts of voluntarily causing hurt. For voluntarily causing grievous hurt, an offender can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined or caned. For voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous means, an offender faces jail of up to seven years and a fine or caning. Voluntarily causing hurt entails jail of up to three years and a fine of up to $5,000. As the offences involve a domestic worker, each of these charges carries enhanced penalties of tw...

New hub at NTU will study safety of novel foods

aseanpr 27 4 月

5 minutes

SINGAPORE - From cell-based steaks to algae shakes, farms of the future here are developing novel foods to replace meat. First, however, these sustainable proteins must be judged safe to eat. This is the idea behind a research hub launched at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) on Tuesday (April 27). Sustainable proteins could provide the island nation with a reliable long-term source of food - as long as they are safe. "No food safety, no food security," said Professor William Chen, director of the university's food science and technology programme The new Future Ready Food Safety Hub will support local and overseas agri-food companies by studying new ways to assess food safety risks in novel foods. To help these companies get their food products approved and on grocery shelves and menus sooner, the scientists at the hub are working to address emerging issues in food safety early. Prof Chen, who will be the principal investigator for NTU at the hub, noted that no risk assessment framework has been set up so far in Singapore to evaluate the safety of many novel foods that are emerging. This is the gap that the research hub wants to fill. "With the increasing efforts in building ...

Resurgence of scam targeting bank customers who are told their accounts have been suspended: Police

aseanpr 26 4 月

2 minutes

SINGAPORE - A scam where customers receive an SMS message claiming that their bank accounts have been suspended has resurfaced here, the police said on Monday (April 26). These spoofed messages, which appear in the same thread as the official messages from local banks, would direct customers to call a phone number for assistance. Swindlers impersonating bank staff would answer the call and ask victims for their NRIC and credit card details. After providing their details, victims would discover that unauthorised transactions were made from their bank accounts. When they contact the bank's hotline, they would be told there are no security issues with their card. The police said that those who receive a suspicious message or call purporting to be from their bank should verify it by calling the hotline published on the bank's website and not the number provided in the SMS. The spoofed messages appear in the same thread as the official messages from local banks. PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE They should also check the messages for grammatical errors, which is an indication of a scam. Police said the public should not disclose their banking details and one-time password to anyone. In Jan...

Man admits to throwing Molotov cocktail at ex-wife’s house

aseanpr 26 4 月

3 minutes

SINGAPORE - Bent on revenge, a man threw a bottle of flammable liquid with a burning cloth wick at his former wife's house in May last year, damaging the landed property. Restaurant manager Ismail Didih Ibrahim, now 36, also sprayed "O$P$" (owe money, pay money) on the property even though her family had not borrowed from a loan shark. As a result, police officers handling the case initially thought that the offences were committed by an illegal moneylender. Nobody was physically injured in the Molotov cocktail attack but Ismail's former wife was left so traumatised that the 32-year-old had to attend counselling sessions. Her family also spent about $600 to install closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras around their Telok Kurau house as they did not feel safe following the incident. Ismail pleaded guilty on Monday (April 26) to committing an act of mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage, and an offence under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) Act. A search of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority's database shows that Ismail is a shareholder of the family-owned and popular Hjh Maimunah Catering. Court documents state that he was working as ...

Chinatown Heritage Centre closed indefinitely, STB taking over management

aseanpr 26 4 月

2 minutes

SINGAPORE - The Chinatown Heritage Centre, initially set to open in April this year after eight months of renovations, will remain closed indefinitely for a review of its operating model. A Singapore Tourism Board (STB) statement on Monday (April 26) said the authority is taking over management of the centre from current operator Chinatown Heritage Centre Private Limited, a consortium of Singapore River Cruise, Journeys and Splash Entertainment. It said the decision was mutual, prompted by Covid-19 and the prolonged restrictions on international travel. Tickets to the centre, which comprises restored shophouses in Pagoda Street, had gone for $18 in March last year. Chinatown Heritage Centre was part of a network of privately run - and ticketed - museums here that form a veritable network apart from public galleries that are free-of-charge for residents. This private network includes attractions such as the Intan, where visitors can experience Peranakan culture and the Mint Museum of Toys in Seah Street. Ms Lim Shoo Ling, STB director of arts and cultural precincts, said: "Over the past six years, Chinatown Heritage Centre Private Limited has worked closely with STB to tell the rich...

S’pore-Hong Kong air travel bubble to start on May 26: Ong Ye Kung

aseanpr 26 4 月

4 minutes

SINGAPORE - The much-anticipated air travel bubble to allow quarantine-free travel between Singapore and Hong Kong is set to take off on May 26 - six months after its initial planned launch. Originally planned to start in November last year, it was deferred by both parties due to the worsening Covid-19 situation in Hong Kong. Singapore's Ministry of Transport (MOT) said on Monday (April 26) that the travel bubble will have a cautious start. There will be one flight a day in each direction, capped at 200 passengers on each flight for the first two weeks. The numbers will be reviewed thereafter. Singapore-Hong Kong air travel bubble to start on May 26, with tighter set of rules | ST LIVE Rules for travel will also be tightened. Travellers must have remained in either Singapore or Hong Kong in the last 14 days prior to departure, and the 14 days period must exclude any time spent in quarantine or stay-home notice (SHN) arising from their last return to Singapore or Hong Kong from overseas. In addition, they must now download and install Hong Kong’s LeaveHomeSafe app on their mobile devices prior to leaving Singapore for Hong Kong. If the air travel bubble has to be suspended when the ...

10-year plan to boost Singapore’s position as hub for intangible assets and intellectual property

aseanpr 26 4 月

2 minutes

SINGAPORE - A masterplan has been drawn up to strengthen Singapore's position as a global hub for intangible assets (IA) and intellectual property (IP). Its initiatives include creating jobs and skills in the IA and IP sector. The 10-year blueprint, known as Singapore IP Strategy 2030, was announced on Monday (April 26), and will involve a task force comprising at least 10 government agencies, including the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore. The task force will be helmed by Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Indranee Rajah, with Second Minister for Law Edwin Tong as deputy chairman. One of the aims of the masterplan is to boost economic growth in Singapore through IP transactions and activities, and ensure that the country offers a conducive environment for businesses to protect and manage their IA and IP. Plans to achieve this include creating a next-generation IP filing system to support innovators and enterprises. The system will be more intuitive to use, with predictive assistance and a user-friendly dashboard offering users analytical insights for better decision-making when managing their IP portfolios. It is targeted to be launched by the middle of 2022. The mas...

10 men taken to hospital after second lorry accident in four days

aseanpr 25 4 月

1 minute

SINGAPORE - Ten men were taken to hospital after an accident involving a lorry in Upper Bukit Timah Road on Saturday morning (April 24). This came just four days after another lorry carrying foreign workers collided with a stationary tipper truck on the Pan-Island Expressway on Tuesday. That accident killed two and left 15 injured. The police said they were alerted to Saturday's incident, near The Rail Mall, at around 7.20am. The 35-year-old driver and nine passengers aged between 26 and 50 were conscious when taken to the hospital, they added. All of them were taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, according to the Singapore Civil Defence Force. Photos of the scene showed the lorry flipped on its side and its canopy lying on the road. Several passengers were seen sitting next to the vehicle. Police investigations are ongoing. More on this topic Related Story 'I never expected to take him back as a dead body': Mother of worker who died in PIE accident Related Story Worker who died in PIE accident was hoping to return to Bangladesh in two months

Throat spray and hydroxychloroquine found to reduce risk of Covid-19 infection: S’pore study

aseanpr 25 4 月

5 minutes

SINGAPORE - Using a throat spray or consuming the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine has been found to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection in healthy individuals in areas with high transmission rates. These findings were revealed by a local study of more than 3,000 healthy young migrant workers who were quarantined in Tuas South Dormitory in May last year. The study found that taking a povidone-iodine throat spray three times a day, or the oral drug hydroxychloroquine once daily, reduced the likelihood of getting infected by Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, by over 20 per cent. The study was done by a team of clinician-scientists from the National University Health System (NUHS), led by Associate Professor Raymond Seet, a senior consultant in the division of neurology at the department of medicine in National University Hospital (NUH). The researchers included infectious diseases experts Professor Paul Tambyah and Associate Professor Alex Cook, as well as Dr Amy Quek and Associate Professor Mikael Hartman. Prof Seet said: "Dr Quek, Prof Hartman and I were early volunteers of the dormitory mission where we ran medical posts, swabbed and screened residents with infecti...

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